Sunday, September 16, 2007

I Am All That Is Man



Well, looky there.

I would have put those pics in the wording of this post and linked them to the referring blog, but as this is not something that can be accomplished with 550 cord, duct tape, and some c4, it's not looking like it's going to happen like that. Thanks, JP & Farm Girl.

I wasn't going to forward the awards originally, but then I figured that it would be a good opportunity to provide some background on how this blog got started and where I am coming from. So, this isn't a you must forward this to 5 people thing, just a wandering of the big boys 'n girls.

Shortly after getting back from a fun filled adventure of sand and sun, I got out from the oppressive thumb and constant orders of the military once and for all, only to put myself under the oppressive thumb and constant orders of a civilian job. Little bit better pay, fewer Things That Go Boom (at me), overtime pay; all good things. On the other hand, there is a lot less in the way of shooting, talking trash, and seeing who has the best butt-story (to be defined at a later date). Not that there isn't anything in the way of the above stuff, (there are quite a few vets around, now) it's just that there isn't nearly as much of the 'hurry up & wait' that provides the setting for good stories.

Good stories is one of those things that I miss from the military. Seeing some guy that you haven't seen in a while and just catching up on good times. A lot of this going on in bars, as well, but I'll get to that. Another similarity in military and bar tales is the almost universal story-response of "Well, if you think that's crazy, lemme tell you about the time when..." It was always fun to catch up with some guy that I hadn't seen in a while, only to hear about the time when he woke up in a Tijuana cathouse with a gassy midget, a hangover, no clothes, and already late for a meeting with a Captain. Honestly, a lot of my stuff here doesn't really compare to some of the crazy stuff that I've heard through the years.

Back to the Bar (coincidentally, an alternative motto to a large number of infantry units). On one float I had a buddy that was a helluva pool player. I was fairly decent myself, due to an embarrassingly large number of dateless nights, but this guy was good. I always did enjoy a good ass-beating, if only for the learning aspect, so it just kind of fell into a routine that whenever we were in port and on libo, he and I would gather the other pool nerds and hit the pool halls before frolicking off to the other festivities of the night.

So one day I'm out of the Corps, don't really go to the bars much anymore, and am kinda bored. I log on to the 'puter and hop onto some of the forums to see what's shakin'. I forget what forum it was, it was most definitely one that was gun-oriented, but there were a few cop stories floating around. I remember reading them one afternoon, realizing that I had read them earlier, and then continuing reading, 'cause they were friggin' hilarious. Eventually, one of the posters of that forum put up a link to this guy's blog, and that's pretty much where it all started. Any blame can be directed to him...

Further reading resulted not only in coffee spewing hilarity, but great advice and links to other good blogs. Blogs that range from historical porn with character (see, not that kind o'porn), to a wide range of funny/occasional tear jerker/now *whip crack!*(congrats by the way)/reminder of all good Corpsmen, to more LEO wisdom, bad puns, and great labels, to a very unique combination of baby pics and gun posts that just make you sit back in your chair and say, "Damn."

So there it is. Me writing about how great these blogs are is like the scientific study that announces that guys dig hot chicks or that boobies bounce at high speed (duh!)(note to self: should have gone into science as a career choice), but they are the ones that are partially to blame for me thinking to myself 'Self, It doesn't look that hard to do this, I could probably pull it off...'



That remains to be seen...

5 comments:

Taco Bell said...

Hey Murph,
You write so well, but you will have to space out your awesome posts or you will get BURNED out brother!!
take care and keep putting all of your stories on paper.
Semper Fi,
Taco

Murphy said...

No worries, I've got a number of stories saved here and there just waiting for a few minor edits before posting.

Blogging more and more reminds me of conversations in the service and in the bars; one story will remind me of another, and another...

Ssssteve said...

Murphy,
Read through a bunch of your posts, liked them all. I want to express my thanks and appreciation for your sacrifice to this country! Me and my family appreciate what you have done! Be back to read more! Found you through your comment on Wyatt's blog.

Murphy said...

Welcome, glad to have ya.

Matt G said...

Boy, you've got it. By "it," I mean that you've got the ability to tell a story, and well. You're a good writer, but given your conversational style, I can tell that you're more than that-- you're a story-teller.

I know something about story-tellers, having surrounded myself with them most of my life. I like to think that I picked up a little of it. (Else, I'm just wasting my time, most days.)

You're a fine read, and a good man. Go forth and cast your goodness upon the unworthy and the worthy alike, sir. :)